Erik ten Hag Speaks On Marcus Rashford Injury Ahead of Carabao Cup Final Vs Newcastle

Erik ten Hag has admitted that Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford is a doubt for the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle.

Rashford was substituted in the 88th minute of the 2-1 (4-3 agg) victory over Barcelona in the Europa League on Thursday night in what appeared to be a tactical change, but now Rashford has hinted at a knock.

The Englishman shared a concerning post on his Instagram account late on Thursday, with a picture of him walking from the field with his boot off accompanied by an injured emoji, but there’s hope that he’ll be able to start against the Magpies at Wembley.

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However, Ten Hag, speaking to the assembled media before setting off for the capital, admitted he’s unsure at present if Rashford will be available.

“I don’t know,” the Dutchman said. “Players are now coming in, we have to do investigations, medical, of course, yesterday we did. So straight after a game most of the time you can’t say, you have to wait for a 100 per cent diagnosis. So let’s do the medical, the work, we have to wait.”

Rashford has scored a career-best 24 goals in all competitions this season, taking his game to another level after returning from the World Cup in Qatar.

He wasn’t on the scoresheet against Barcelona, but goals from Fred and Antony helped United fight back from a goal down to win 4-3 on aggregate, setting up a round-of-16zXX tie with another La Liga side, Real Betis.

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Speaking about the upcoming final against Newcastle, Ten Hag added: “It’s great. As you have seen, we take every game seriously, we take every competition seriously, so we’ve now progressed to a final and it’s great to play a final. But if you play you want to win.

“It was a good feeling [against Barcelona], that unified feeling, really together. It was good. So a great opponent, because it’s one of the best teams in Europe, Barcelona, a typical way of playing, and if you can beat them it’s great.

“Sunday is a challenge again but totally different. It’s also great to play them, to find a way to play against different styles, different systems. Every time you want to beat them, every time you want to find a good strategy and plan to beat opponents.”